Sherlock Holmes.

Chapter 88 Memoirs (22)
"He finally got his chance, though. He tried to get into your room that night, but you didn't quite fall asleep, which ruined his plan. You may remember that you didn't take your usual daily medicine that night."

"indeed so."

"I think he must have put something in the medicine, so he made sure you were fast asleep.

"Of course, I know he'd take another chance if he got the chance anyway. He's very glad you've come to town.

"The reason why I ordered Miss Harrison to stay in the house all day was that I didn't want to give him a chance to get the papers.

"On the one hand, I had him mistakenly thinking that there was no risk, and on the other hand, I was keeping an eye on what was going on inside.

"I've thought for a long time that most of the documents are still in the house, but I don't want to look for them myself, but let him take them out by himself. This will save me a lot of trouble.

"Is there anything else I haven't explained?"

I asked, "He could have gone in through the door that night, but why did he break the window?"

"If you go in through the door, you have to go through seven bedrooms, but if you look through the window, you only need to go through the lawn."

"Don't you think he intended murder?" asked Phelps. "That knife is good enough for a weapon."

Holmes shrugged.

It is with the utmost sorrow that I write this last case in order to complete the record of the outstanding deeds of Sherlock Holmes, a gifted detective.From the first joint case after the first accidental acquaintance - "Tracking of Blood Letters" to "The Missing Navy Agreement" - this case avoided a major international dispute because of his participation, and recorded all the way, although It's quite messy, superficial, and not vivid enough, but I've been trying my best to record it truthfully and objectively.

I had planned to finish writing the "Missing Naval Agreement" and never to touch upon that case which caused me so much grief and anguish for the rest of my life.But two years have passed, and not only has the pain remained undiminished, but I was even more touched by the letters recently published by Colonel James Moriarty in defense of his late brother.I thought I had no choice but to stand up and clarify the truth.Because I'm the only one who knows the truth of the matter.Now that the time has come, there is no point in keeping it secret.

As far as I know, this matter has been reported three times in newspapers, once published in the "Geneva Times" on May 1891, 5, once on May 6, 1891, published in the Reuters Telegraph of major British newspapers, and the other time was just now Mentioned, those recently published letters.The first two reports were simply reports, while the third completely distorted the facts.In view of this, it is my duty to make public what happened between Professor Moriarty and my friend Holmes.

Readers may have noticed that since I got married and started practicing medicine, my close relationship with Sherlock Holmes has begun to be somewhat estranged.While he still comes to me when he does need help, it does happen less and less often.

I found that in 1890 I had recorded only three cases.That is, in the winter of this year and the early spring of 1891, I learned through the newspapers that Holmes was employed by the French government to handle a very important case.I have had two letters from him, one from Narbon and the other from Nîmes, so I presume that he must be in France for a long time.Surprisingly, however, on the evening of April 1891, 4, he returned to my office, paler and thinner.

He saw my concern and said, "Yes, I've been tired lately and I've been a little out of control. How about closing the blinds?"

There was a lamp on the table for me to read, and the dim light illuminated the whole room.Holmes walked along the wall, closed and bolted the shutter.

I asked, "Are you afraid of something?"

"Yes, I'm afraid."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I'm terrified of being hit with an air gun."

"My dear friend, what is the matter?"

"You know me well, Watson, and I am not a coward. But if you are confronted with danger and insist on not acknowledging it, it is not courage but stupidity. Give me a match, please?"

He smoked and seemed to calm down a little.

"I'm sorry to bother you so late," my friend said, "I want to climb over your back garden wall, can you make an exception?"

"In the end what happened?"

He held out his hand, and I saw by the light that two of his knuckles were hurt and dripping blood.

He smiled and said, "Did you see it? It's not that I'm worrying too much, the danger does exist. Is your wife at home?"

"She went to a friend's place."

"only you?"

"Yes."

"So I'd like you to do me a favor, how about a week-long trip to continental Europe with me?"

"Where to go?"

"Oh, anywhere, I don't care."

This is very strange.He never took vacations without purpose, and his pale, emaciated face showed that his nerves were stretched to a certain degree.He saw my doubts from my expression, so he clasped his hands and rested his arms on his knees as before, and began to explain to me in detail.

"Have you ever heard of Professor Moriarty?" he asked.

"No."

Holmes said: "It is a miracle! He has influence everywhere in London, but no one knows him. This makes his crimes reach the most heinous level. I tell you seriously, Watson, if I can defeat him , if I can get rid of this demon for the people, then my career will also reach its peak. After that, I am going to live the rest of my life in leisure. You must keep one thing secret, recently I served the Scandinavian royal family and The few cases solved in the French Republic have enabled me to live the quiet life I love, and I can concentrate on the chemical experiments I love. But, Watson, when I think of London and Moriarty When a bad person like the professor is doing evil, he can't feel at ease at all, let alone live my quiet life."

"So, what bad things has he done?"

"His resume is very unusual. He came from a good family, was well educated, and was a mathematical genius. At the age of 21, he wrote a treatise on the binomial theorem, which made him famous in Europe. With that treatise, he Obtained a professorship in a college, and the future is bright. But he has inherited some of the bad qualities of his ancestors, and the blood of evil has not been alleviated in him, but has been enhanced by his extreme intelligence. He was so notorious at the university for all his bad deeds that he was finally forced to resign. After resigning he came to London and became a military instructor. That's all people know about him, and I have learned a lot from my research. new situation.

"You understand, Watson, that I know best about the high-level criminal operations in London. In recent years, I have always felt that there is an behind-the-scenes operation of many crimes. They are insidious, deep-rooted, even Strong enough to shield criminals and interfere with the law. Many cases I have handled, such as forgery cases, robbery cases, murder cases, etc., can feel the existence of this powerful force. I used reasoning to find that this force exists in some Existence in unsolved cases. Although no one invited me to handle the case, I have never given up on the investigation of the forces behind the scenes for so many years. Now, the opportunity has finally come. I followed the clues to investigate and track, and finally the target Pointing to this mathematical genius-retired professor Moriarty.

"He is the Napoleon of evil, Watson. He is involved in more than half the crime in London, and directs most of the unsolved crimes. He is a ghost, a profound philosopher, a thinker, indeed. Possess superhuman wisdom. He is like a spider entrenched in the center of the spider web, unmoving, but he is familiar with and controls every trembling of the inexhaustible spider web. He never shows up in person, but makes suggestions. He has many accomplices, There is a very strict organization. If someone plans to commit a crime, no matter theft, robbery or murder, as long as the professor says something, someone will organize and implement it. Even if his accomplices are unfortunately imprisoned, he has the money to bail them out and has the ability to replace them. They pleaded. But he himself was never arrested, and no one even suspected him. That is how I conjecture their crimes, Watson, and I have been working to expose the gang.

"However, this professor is extremely guarded and cunning. Although I have tried various methods, I have not been able to obtain enough evidence to send him to prison. You know my abilities well, Watson, but the three Months have passed, and now I must confess that I have met an adversary of my own intellect. I admire his abilities more than I loathe his crimes. Still, he leaves a small hole. And Under such strict surveillance, he certainly has no chance to fix these omissions. Since I had the opportunity, I took advantage of the opportunity to lay the French net, just waiting for him to take the bait. During the three days from now to next Monday, as soon as the time is right, The professor and his accomplices will be wiped out by the police. At that time, the biggest trial of this century will come, and more than 40 major unsolved cases will be solved. As for these criminals, what awaits them is severe punishment. Now is the last It's a critical moment, as long as we are a little negligent, we may be escaped by them, and our success will fall short.

"Well, if everything can be done quietly, without alarming Professor Moriarty, then you'll be done. But he is indeed very alert, and he seems to know all the nets I cast step by step, so Time and time again, he broke through the net almost immediately. Fortunately, I stopped him in time every time. My friend, if I could record the details of my secret fight with him, it would be the most interesting thing in the annals of detectives. The first page. I've never been so evenly matched by an opponent, and never been so close to the enemy. He's doing a great job, and I'm only slightly ahead of him. This morning, I took The last measure, I believe this matter will be completely over in three days. I was sitting at home, thinking about this matter, when suddenly the door opened, you know? That Professor Moriarty actually appeared in front of me.

"I was quite calm then, Watson, but I won't lie to you, but I was taken aback when the man with hatred stood there staring at me. I knew his face well. He was thin and Tall, with a broad forehead, deep-set eyes, no beard, pale face, looks like an ascetic, but he does not lose the demeanor of a professor. Perhaps because of over-study, his shoulders and back are bent, and his head is always stretched forward , and kept shaking, his appearance was very rare. He squinted his eyes and observed me curiously.

"'Your forehead is not as developed as I think, sir,' said he. 'It is a dangerous habit to play with a pistol in your pocket, especially a loaded one.'

"Indeed, the moment I saw him, I realized the danger, so I quickly took out the pistol from the drawer, put it in my pocket quietly, and pointed it at him through the clothes. I knew that as far as he was concerned, The best way to save myself now is to kill people and sell stolen goods. But since he found out, I simply took out the pistol, turned on the machine head, and put it on the table. He was still smiling, squinting, with an indescribable expression in his eyes I am secretly glad that I have a gun by my side.

"He started: 'You obviously don't know me.'

"'On the contrary, I think I know you well. Please take a seat. If there is anything I want to say, I'll give you five minutes.'

"'You already know what I think,' said he.

"'Then you understand my answer, too.'

"'Can't you step back?'

"'Absolutely not,' I said firmly.

"Suddenly he reached into his pocket. I hastily picked up the gun that was on the table. But instead he produced a notepad with some dates scrawled on it.'

"He said: 'On January 23th you broke my business, on the [-]rd you hindered my actions; in mid-February you continued to cause me a lot of trouble; at the end of March, you completely disrupted my plans; I found at the end of April that I was in danger of losing my liberty because of your interference. I can't stand it any longer.'

"I asked: 'So what are you going to do?'

"He shook his head and said: 'You must cease your actions, Mr. Holmes! You know that you must cease.'

"I said: 'Talk after Monday.'

"He said: 'Tut, tsk! I am fully convinced that it is impossible for you to be wise enough not to know that there is only one way out of this, and that is that you must stop. There is only one way for us to go if you will. Seeing you From a mind game point of view, it's a lot of fun to mess with my business like this. But I'll be honest, if I was forced to do something, it would be heartbreaking. Don't laugh , sir, I assure you, that is no mere talk.'

"I said: 'There is always danger in being a detective.'

"He said: 'It's not danger, it's destruction. You hinder not one person but a group of people. In spite of your ingenuity, you still don't fully understand its power. You must go far, Mr. Holmes, or you will will bury yourself.'

"I'm afraid," said I, rising, "that I shall be delaying some important business which awaits me elsewhere, as our conversation is very speculative.'

"He also stood up, looked at me silently, then shook his head sadly.

"'Very well, it seems a pity, but I have done my best. I know every detail of your course of action, and you will not succeed before Monday. It is a duel between two tigers, Mr. Holmes. You want to push me away. Go to court, and I tell you, I will never go to court. If you want to defeat me, I tell you, it will never be possible. If you have the ability to destroy me, then rest assured, I will die with you.'

"I said: 'My honor, Mr. Moriarty. I also want to tell you that if it is possible to get rid of you, then, for the sake of the public, I would be happy to die with you.'

"He growled: 'I'll die with you, not you get rid of me!' and he turned away.

"That was my confrontation with Professor Moriarty. I don't deny that it disturbed me. For he spoke so calmly and crisply that he seemed to mean it. A common criminal cannot do that." .Of course, you may ask why the police are not used to protect me. Because I believe he will send his henchmen to kill me, and I have evidence that he will do so."

"Have they attacked you already?"

"My dear Watson, Professor Moriarty will not let go of any opportunity. At noon that day, I went to Oxford Street to run an errand, and I had just reached the intersection of Bentinck Street and Welbeck Street. A horse-drawn cart I survived the crash by dodging to the pavement. The car sped through Marylebone Lane in a split second. I have only been walking on the pavement since then. Once again, I was passing Weir Street At that time, a piece of brick suddenly fell from the roof of a house and broke beside me. I called the police. The police checked the place and found that there were stone slabs and bricks piled up everywhere on the roof. They said that The piece was blown down by the wind. I knew, of course, that someone was trying to kill me, but I had no proof. Afterwards I took a carriage to my brother's in Pall Mall, and spent the day there. On the way to your house just now, I was attacked by a gangster with a mace. Later, I beat the guy to the ground instead, and the police took him away. My hand hit the man's teeth, so I broke my knuckles.

"I can assure you, however, that we will never find out the connection between the man arrested and Professor Moriarty. I believe the professor is working on exercises ten miles away.

"After hearing this, Watson, you will no longer be surprised why I close the shutters as soon as I come in, and then I want to jump out from the back wall."

I have always admired my friend's fearless courage.After so many dangerous things happened, he can still speak out calmly, which makes me admire even more.

I said, "Stay here tonight!"

"No, Watson, I will bring danger to you by staying. I have made a plan, and everything will pass. The police will detain them without me now, but I still need to testify in court. Therefore, in the A few days before arresting him, it is best to leave to facilitate police activities. It would be great if you could play with me for a few days."

I said, "Recently, the medical service is not busy, and my neighbor is very willing to help people. I will definitely go with you."

"How about leaving tomorrow morning?"

"of course can."

"Ah, very good. But I ask you to remember a few things, my dear Watson, and please do it seriously. Because we are facing the most cunning enemy and the most powerful organization in Europe." Now, please listen, whatever luggage you take, it must not say where you are going, and it will be sent to Victoria Station by someone you can trust tonight. Tomorrow morning you will take a hansom, but tell The servant does not want the employer to move the first two cars. After getting into the carriage, write the address on a note to the coachman. The address is at the end of the Strand, Lowther Street. Make sure he keeps the note. Before riding Pay the fare first, and when you reach the finish line, cross the street immediately, and you will be on the opposite side of the street at [-]:[-]. You will see a carriage parked there on the side of the road, and the driver is wearing a Cloak, with red trim on the collar. Get in that car and you'll be at Victoria Station in time for the express train to the Continent."

(End of this chapter)